Whether you guessed it or not, the images that you are looking at are all self-portraits. What is both surprising and inspiring is that the model and photographer is only 17 years old. His self portraits are incredibly unique and show a skill and maturity beyond his years.

“I basically owe everything to Flickr, how everyone is so warm and encouraging, and I never believed any of it.” – Alex Stoddard

The artist behind these photos is Alex Stoddard. In a recent interview with MyModernMet.com Alex revealed his secrets that developed his styles: “I basically owe everything to Flickr. When I first joined, I would read different posts that people would make in regard to Flickr’s community, how everyone is so warm and encouraging, and I never believed any of it.”

We, in turn, owe Flickr’s warm and encouraging community a word of thanks for helping such a promising artist share his work with a wider audience. Alex has an uncanny way of harnessing and incorporating the natural elements into his photography. His playful use of fire, water and air, and his wonderful way of using the outdoors as his backdrop, give his work a universally appealing quality. However, what is most striking about Alex’s pictures is his ability to fit perfectly into the photos. A risk you run with self-portraits, is the artist being self conscious in front of the camera, the sort of awkwardness that can grow from years of being behind the camera.

But Alex has the necessary ability of being natural in front of the lens. This is an inherent quality in all of the top models you see, and Alex shares this quality. He fits right into the world he designs. Whether it’s a forest, a ring of fire, or his Sunday-morning-wallpapered apartment, Alex is equally skilled at being both the creator and the subject of his work.

We’re looking forward to more of this prodigious young artist’s work in the future.